Nation has chance to see history

Thursday

Dec 27, 2007 at 12:01 AMDec 27, 2007 at 12:44 AM

By Glen Farley

FOXBORO — The 2007 New England Patriots are making history, all right.

Late Wednesday afternoon, the NFL announced that it had arranged with broadcast television partners CBS and NBC for an unprecedented three-way national simulcast of the NFL Network's telecast of the Patriots' game with the New York Giants in East Rutherford, N.J., on Saturday night when they will attempt to become the first team in league history to conclude a regular season 16-0. This will allow the entire country to see the game.

With the NFL Network available in fewer than 40 percent of the nation's homes with TVs, the NFL has been facing increased pressure from politicians pushing to make the game available to a wider audience.

“We have taken this extraordinary step because it is in the best interest of our fans,” Commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement released by the league. “What we have seen for the past year is a very strong consumer demand for NFL Network. We appreciate CBS and NBC delivering the NFL Network telecast on Saturday night to the broad audience that deserves to see this potentially historic game. Our commitment to the NFL Network is stronger than ever.”

In New England, The game was already scheduled to be televised — and still will be — by ABC affiliates in Boston (WCVB, Channel 5) and Manchester, N.H. (WMUR, Channel 9).

The NFL had claimed that the onus of making the game widely available fell on the major cable providers with which the league has bitterly feuded. Companies such as Comcast and Time Warner have declined to carry the network as part of basic packages.

But lawmakers have pressured the NFL to ensure more viewers could see the game. Last week, two prominent members of the Senate Judiciary Committee sent a letter to Goodell threatening to reconsider the league's antitrust exemption.

Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., who co-wrote the letter with Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., said he was “delighted” by the NFL's concession.

“I think it was a smart move on their part,” he said in a phone interview.

Leahy expected to speak with Goodell again next month about the ongoing question of how many fans will be able to see games on the channel. Saturday's matchup wraps up the NFL Network's second season of airing live contests, with eight per year. This one and a key Thursday night game between Green Bay and Dallas last month drew widespread complaints about the lack of availability.

“I never completely gave up hope, but I was getting a little discouraged Christmas afternoon when we still had not gotten a positive answer,” said Leahy, who added that his staff members were talking with NFL officials during the holiday.

The NFL Network telecast is scheduled to begin at 8 p.m., with the kickoff slated for 8:15.

Saturday night's simulcast will be the first three-network simulcast in NFL history and the first of any kind of an NFL game since Jan. 15, 1967, when CBS and NBC carried Super Bowl I in Los Angeles.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.